my column for this week's newspaper
Kyle Busch is just driving away. Literally and figuratively.
Busch won his sixth race of the season Saturday night, edging out Carl Edwards on the last lap as the caution flag flew.
Busch not only leads the championship points but he also has a 40-point edge as of today headed into the Chase for the Sprint Cup in eight more weeks.
Some people think a hot start can hurt you over the long NASCAR Sprint Cup season, but Busch is making sure he can afford a bad week during the final 10-race playoff.
Busch's 60 bonus points puts him up on the next highest total of 20 shared by Edwards and Kasey Kahne. No one else has won more than one race this season.
Last year Jimmie Johnson put on a show, winning 10 races en route to his second consecutive championship, and now Busch looks well on his way to eclipsing that total.
Through 18 races, Busch has won six, or one-third. The best winning percentage in baseball right now belongs to the Tampa Bay Rays at .628 entering play Sunday. Busch is at a cool .667, roundup up of course.
And the younger brother has proven over the past couple of weeks that he can win on any track, anywhere.
Busch picked up his first road course win in the Sprint Cup Series by dominating Infineon Raceway. He has won the last two restrictor plate races, winning Saturday in Daytona and at Talladega earlier this season.
Busch also has wins at Dover, Darlington and Atlanta.
Of the 10 races during the Chase there are stops at Dover, Atlanta and Talladega on the schedule. Busch was also in position for a win at Richmond, where they run the final race before the Chase.
Watkins Glen is on the map ahead, as is a second trip to Pocono, California, Bristol and Michigan.
It is not unreasonable given the performances he continues to lay down to expect Kyle to have seven or eight wins headed into the Chase.
It also wouldn't be unreasonable to think he couldn't win three or four of the Chase races. 12 or 13 wins this season is completely within his grasp.
Busch has found a way to leave the most powerful team in the sport, a team he was relegated to being the number three guy at best, and become the number one star on another team of stars.
Two-time champion Tony Stewart has struggled to find any consistency all season, and hasn't found victory lane yet. Stewart didn't even finish Saturday's race in Daytona, suffering from flu-like symptoms.
Denny Hamlin, the 2006 Rookie of the Year, has been strong in winning at Martinsville, but also has struggled to finish races.
All three drivers will most likely cruise into the Chase, but only one will make any noise.
I had been skeptical about Busch's talent in the past. I knew he was good, but I thought he was way too immature and stubborn to harness it.
I figured he would win races, make Chases, and continue to fall short of championships because he wasn't finishing races.
Busch has shown maturity this season, and is not only finishing races, he is making comebacks and winning them.
Like last night, where he went from 37th at one point to the checkered flag at the end.
Clearly this season is Kyle Busch's for the taking, and everyone else is just living in it.
Kyle Busch is just driving away. Literally and figuratively.
Busch won his sixth race of the season Saturday night, edging out Carl Edwards on the last lap as the caution flag flew.
Busch not only leads the championship points but he also has a 40-point edge as of today headed into the Chase for the Sprint Cup in eight more weeks.
Some people think a hot start can hurt you over the long NASCAR Sprint Cup season, but Busch is making sure he can afford a bad week during the final 10-race playoff.
Busch's 60 bonus points puts him up on the next highest total of 20 shared by Edwards and Kasey Kahne. No one else has won more than one race this season.
Last year Jimmie Johnson put on a show, winning 10 races en route to his second consecutive championship, and now Busch looks well on his way to eclipsing that total.
Through 18 races, Busch has won six, or one-third. The best winning percentage in baseball right now belongs to the Tampa Bay Rays at .628 entering play Sunday. Busch is at a cool .667, roundup up of course.
And the younger brother has proven over the past couple of weeks that he can win on any track, anywhere.
Busch picked up his first road course win in the Sprint Cup Series by dominating Infineon Raceway. He has won the last two restrictor plate races, winning Saturday in Daytona and at Talladega earlier this season.
Busch also has wins at Dover, Darlington and Atlanta.
Of the 10 races during the Chase there are stops at Dover, Atlanta and Talladega on the schedule. Busch was also in position for a win at Richmond, where they run the final race before the Chase.
Watkins Glen is on the map ahead, as is a second trip to Pocono, California, Bristol and Michigan.
It is not unreasonable given the performances he continues to lay down to expect Kyle to have seven or eight wins headed into the Chase.
It also wouldn't be unreasonable to think he couldn't win three or four of the Chase races. 12 or 13 wins this season is completely within his grasp.
Busch has found a way to leave the most powerful team in the sport, a team he was relegated to being the number three guy at best, and become the number one star on another team of stars.
Two-time champion Tony Stewart has struggled to find any consistency all season, and hasn't found victory lane yet. Stewart didn't even finish Saturday's race in Daytona, suffering from flu-like symptoms.
Denny Hamlin, the 2006 Rookie of the Year, has been strong in winning at Martinsville, but also has struggled to finish races.
All three drivers will most likely cruise into the Chase, but only one will make any noise.
I had been skeptical about Busch's talent in the past. I knew he was good, but I thought he was way too immature and stubborn to harness it.
I figured he would win races, make Chases, and continue to fall short of championships because he wasn't finishing races.
Busch has shown maturity this season, and is not only finishing races, he is making comebacks and winning them.
Like last night, where he went from 37th at one point to the checkered flag at the end.
Clearly this season is Kyle Busch's for the taking, and everyone else is just living in it.
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